BOCC to hold interviews for volunteer positions in public

By Soncirey Mitchell
Reader Staff

The Bonner County board of commissioners voted Aug. 26 to conduct interviews for county volunteer positions — such as members of the Zoning Commission — in public. Meeting attendees will not have the opportunity to ask questions or comment during the meeting, but members of the public may submit questions for the board to ask prior to the interviews.

As is standard hiring practice, the board previously held all interviews in executive session to keep candidate’s sensitive information confidential. However; BOCC Chair Asia Williams argued that volunteers are not technically employees and could be treated differently.

Commissioners Ron Korn and Brian Domke both expressed hesitation, with Korn arguing that “We should uphold the same standards for our volunteers as we do our employees. I don’t know why we would have to treat them any differently.”

Domke’s primary concern was that some interview questions might reveal personal or proprietary information that should not be shared with the public, though he agreed that most questions would not fall under that category.

In response, Williams suggested that the board could “pop in and out” of executive session when discussing sensitive topics.

“I look at the statute that we’re using to justify going into executive session, [and] I can’t see clearly that that’s reasonable,” said Williams. “And so then, I go to the open meeting law, and for me, that says — when in doubt — I need to open that meeting.”

Page 1 of the Idaho Open Meeting Law Manual, produced by the Attorney General’s Office, states, “Remember, when in doubt, open the meeting.”

Domke then amended the original motion, clarifying that the BOCC would “hold the interview and deliberation portion of the boards and commissions [interviews] in public using the executive session only as allowed by state statute.”

The amended motion passed with Korn dissenting.